$99 iPhone Arrives, But Not at Walmart

AT&T is knocking out refurbished 8GB iPhones at $99 apiece, and 16GB models for $199. This news comes in at the exact same time that Walmart’s iPhone goes official, at $197 for the 8GB handset.

That AT&T is selling refurbs is nothing special — both AT&T and Apple are veterans of the refurb game and some great bargains can be had. That Walmart’s iPhone price is not $99, as some gullible people believed, is equally non-shocking.

But the fact that Walmart, a company known for squeezing every penny out of its suppliers, managed to knock Apple down just $2 is astonishing. We wouldn’t be surprised if this discount is actually coming out of Walmart’s pocket.

Of course, Apple is a famously tough negotiator, too – just look at the fuss over the 99¢ track price at the iTunes Store – but this meeting reminds us of our tedious science teacher, who used to think himself very clever when banging on about "immovable objects" and "unstoppable forces". The moron.